NFL playoffs: Philadelphia runs over New York

The Philadelphia Eagles opened the NFL playoffs the same way they ended the regular season – by beating the New York Giants.

But the Eagles’ 38-7 victory on Saturday night came in a much more dominating way than Philadelphia’s 22-16 win on Jan. 8 over their NFC East rivals.

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The latter victory secured the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs, homefield advantage and a first-round bye. The two-week break gave Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts time to heal from a sprained throwing shoulder sustained on Dec. 18.

While Hurts threw two touchdown passes on Saturday night, he also ran for one as Philadelphia buried the Giants with 268 yards on 44 rushing attempts and an 11:26 time-of-possession advantage.

Running backs Kenneth Gainwell ran for 112 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries and Miles Sanders ran for 90 yards on 17 carries to lead the Eagles’ ground game.

Philadelphia scored touchdowns on four of its five full first-half possessions to build a 28-0 lead before adding 10 points to its total in the fourth quarter.

Thirteen players from Alabama high schools and colleges got on the field during the New York-Philadelphia game:

· Reed Blankenship (West Limestone) started at safety for the Eagles. Blankenship made five tackles, recorded one tackle for loss and broke up one pass. The rookie ran up under center from punt formation as Philadelphia tried to pull New York offside on fourth down, too.

· James Bradberry (Pleasant Grove, Samford) started at cornerback for the Eagles. Bradberry made two tackles, intercepted one pass and broke up another. Bradberry picked off New York quarterback Daniel Jones at the Philadelphia 46-yard line with 27 seconds left in the first quarter. He returned the interception 8 yards.

· Giants inside linebacker Landon Collins (Alabama) played but did not record any stats.

· Giants offensive tackle Korey Cunningham (Montevallo) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Landon Dickerson (Alabama) started at left guard for the Eagles. Dickerson left the game briefly in the first half after being shaken up, but he returned on Philadelphia’s next possession.

· Eagles offensive lineman Jack Driscoll (Auburn) played but did not record any stats.

· Giants cornerback Cor’Dale Flott (Saraland) played but did not record any stats. Flott left the game with a hamstring injury and did not return.

· Jalen Hurts (Alabama) started at quarterback for the Eagles. Hurts completed 16-of-24 passes for 154 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions and ran for 34 yards and one touchdown on nine carries. Hurts threw touchdown passes of 16 yards to tight end Dallas Goedert with 10:06 left in the first quarter and 9 yards to wide receiver DeVonta Smith with 1:21 left in the first quarter. Hurts ran 5 yards for a touchdown with 43 seconds remaining in the first half.

· Eagles cornerback Josh Jobe (Alabama) made one tackle.

· Xavier McKinney (Alabama) started at free safety for the Giants. McKinney made eight tackles, recorded one sack, had a tackle for loss and broke up a pass. McKinney caused Hurts to fumble on the sack, but Philadelphia recovered the loose football.

· Evan Neal (Alabama) started at right offensive tackle for the Giants.

· Giants cornerback Aaron Robinson (Alabama) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Eagles punter Arryn Siposs (Auburn) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Darius Slayton (Auburn) started at wide receiver for the Giants. Slayton had a 4-yard reception.

· DeVonta Smith (Alabama) started at wide receiver for the Eagles. Smith caught six passes for 61 yards and one touchdown. He scored on a 9-yard reception as Philadelphia took a 14-0 lead with 1:21 remaining in the first quarter.

· Eagles wide receiver Quez Watkins (Athens) played but did not record any stats.

· Giants defensive lineman Nick Williams (Minor, Samford) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

New York qualified for the playoffs as a wild-card with a 9-7-1 record and upended the NFC North champion Minnesota Vikings 31-24 on Sunday for the Giants’ first postseason victory since they beat the New England Patriots 21-17 in Super Bowl XLVI on Feb. 5, 2012.

New York also lost to Philadelphia 48-22 on Dec. 11 as well as the regular-season finale before getting swept out of the postseason.

The Eagles will play for a spot in Super Bowl LVII in the NFC Championship Game at 2 p.m. CST Jan. 29 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. The Eagles’ opponent will be the winner of Sunday’s game between the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.